Tell the truth: Shorten's plan for Labor

Bill Shorten has a plan to get Labor back in government: tell the truth.

But he's conceded this could be challenging for the federal Labor party.

Speaking at the Australian Workers' Union national conference on Monday night, Mr Shorten said simple electoral volatility was being incorrectly attributed for what truly is voter disdain for untrustworthy politicians in recent polls.

What he says Australians were doing was consciously punishing misleading politicians and showing how fed up they were with "unexplained and unexpected" decisions being handed down.

"The best way for Labor to go forward is to tell the truth," he told union delegates.

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He said the Abbott government was currently paying a price for its dishonesty and voters would likely punish those perceived to have gone back on their word.

Voters were also hungry for a long-term, consistent vision for the country reaching into the coming decades, he said.

He also said there's a need for sensible conversations about this in a "real world", and not merely ideological, context.

He went on to accuse the Abbott government of constantly 'bleating' about debt as part of an ongoing scare campaign that was damaging confidence in the economy.

"The government currently in power has misread the economic play," he said.

Nevertheless, he said he didn't believe the Liberal policy directive would ensure Australia automatically entered a deep downturn because its economic fundamentals were sound.

Mr Shorten repeated the importance of Australia's minimum wage as a stimulus for the economy and a boost for Australia's "great middle class".

Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszcuk - who addressed the delegates earlier in the day to rapturous applause - also earned praise from Mr Shorten: "Giant killer doesn't even begin to describe you," he said

The AWU conference continues on Tuesday, with former Labor prime minister Bob Hawke scheduled to give an address.